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Padres activate Margot; Renfroe (elbow) to DL

By
Justin ToscanoMLB.com

PHOENIX -- The Padres gained an outfielder and lost another, continuing a trend early in this season.

The club reinstated center fielder Manuel Margot from the 10-day disabled list prior to Saturday's game against the D-backs, which the Padres lost, 6-2. He suffered bruised ribs when he was drilled by a pitch in Colorado on April 10. However, right fielder Hunter Renfroe was placed on the 10-day disabled list, retroactive to April 18, with right elbow inflammation.

PHOENIX -- The Padres gained an outfielder and lost another, continuing a trend early in this season.

The club reinstated center fielder Manuel Margot from the 10-day disabled list prior to Saturday's game against the D-backs, which the Padres lost, 6-2. He suffered bruised ribs when he was drilled by a pitch in Colorado on April 10. However, right fielder Hunter Renfroe was placed on the 10-day disabled list, retroactive to April 18, with right elbow inflammation.

Margot is scheduled to bat leadoff Saturday at Chase Field. Franchy Cordero, who played in center in Margot's absence, is in right field in place of Wil Myers, who returned from the disabled list on Friday and is getting the day off to ease back into things.

"It's good to have Manny back," Padres manager Andy Green said. "I think defense is where he solidifies us up the middle in a big way. We were under the belief that he was going to take off as well offensively, had some good at-bats before he got hit."

Margot hit .159 through the first 11 games of the season before suffering the injury. He was moved down in the lineup because of early struggles.

"The hits weren't really showing up, but I was putting good swings on the ball, and I think at this level especially, that's what you're trying to do," Margot said through an interpreter before Saturday's game. "You're trying to make hard contact and know that will bring good things."

Margot said he started to feel improvement in his ribs about four days after he was hit by the pitch. He began with light activity, then increased the intensity as he went.

He estimated that he took about 12 at-bats in extended spring training. Green on Friday said Margot had felt good, but that the club wanted him to get his timing back before officially returning to action.

Margot returns without trepidation about something like the Colorado incident happening again.

"Those are things that happen in the game and you can't really think about it too much, because you don't want to be out there thinking about that and playing scared or anything like that," he said.

Green said Renfroe, on the other hand, "played with one arm for about a week and a half." He said Renfroe did so because the team was so thin in the outfield without two regulars in Myers and Margot.

"He's had at-bats where he's swinging with one hand," Green said. "He gave everything he could and this is, for him, the best thing -- to let him rest a bit."

"Of course it helps whenever you get all your horses back," hitting coach Matt Stairs said. "Obviously you're missing Renfroe or whatever, but to have all your horses in the lineup, it's like, 'Here we go.' We saw some great things this Spring Training from all of the players."

"What role we choose to bring [Strahm] back in will be predicated on what we have in the rotation and what happens in the bullpen, but he's a guy that could swing either way," Green said. "In Colin's case, it's probably over a month away. Hasn't thrown in a game yet, hasn't thrown live BP yet. But he looks strong, it's good to see."

Final thought on Cordero

After Friday's win, Green seemed sure that Cordero's homer -- pegged at 489 feet per Statcast™ -- had to have gone at least 500.

He jokingly continued his argument Saturday.

"It was 500. There's no way that ball's not 90 feet over the fence," he said. "Home to first distance. Think that cleared home to first over that fence. That hit 60 feet above it. So you're telling me it's coming down in the next 90 feet?